Anne parents, Otto Frank and Edith Hollander were married on May 12, 1925 in Aachen, Germany. One year latter on February16, 1926 they had Margot Bette Frank in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. About three years after Margot was born they had Anneliese Marie Frank, Anne for short, in Frankfurt am Main, Germany.

In the Spring of 1933 Otto Frank opened a Dutch branch of Opekta-Werke, a company that made pectin that is used in making jam. The Franks decided in the summer of 1933 to leave Germany and move to the Netherlands because of Germanys growing tensions. Edith, Margot, and Anne moved in with their Grandmother Hollander in Aachen and Otto went to Holland. Anne was only four then. On December 5,1933, Edith and Margot moved to Holland with Otto. Sometime in February of 1934 Anne moved to Holland and joined her family. There, Anne started attending kindergarten in Montessori Schools.

In the fall of 1935, defining Jews as non-citizens and making mixed Aryan and Jewish marriage illegal, the Nuremberg Laws were passed.

In March 1939 Grandmother Hollander moved in with the Franks. Latter that year on September 1, Germany attacks Poland, and then France and England declared war on Germany, the beginning of WW2 starts.

In 1940 the Netherlands join on to Germanys side and the protection of Holland is no longer protecting the Jews. One year latter in the summer of 1941, Margot and Anne start attending Jewish schools in Amsterdam.

The work camps began in 1942, and Anne’s parents have a feeling that they might need to go into hiding. Otto thought they could always move into the Annex, his business building. On January 3,1942 Grandmother Hollander died. Latter during the year when Anne turned 13 on June 12,1942 her parents gave her a white plaid diary. She named it Kitty.

Anne wrote:

-June 20,1942-

“After 1940 the good times were few and far between: first there was the war, then the capitulation and then the arrival of the Germans, which is when the trouble started for the Jews, our freedom is was restricted by a series of anti-Jewish decrees: Jews were required to wear a golden star; Jews were required to turn in their bicycle; Jews were forbidden to use street cars, even their own; Jews were required to do their shopping between 3-5p.m. (…)ect.”

Margot received a call-up notice on July 5, 1942 to repot for deportation to a labor camp. The Franks moved into the “Secret Annex” on July 6, 1942 after receiving Margot’s letter. The Annex was above an office at 263 Prisengracht in Amsterdam. Meip Gies, who worked for Otto at one time, helped the family live with food, water, news, links or info to the outside world for 25 months. The van Pels, a Jewish family of 3, joined the Franks in the Annex on July 13,1942.

Anne writes:

“He’s an obnoxious boy who lies around on his bed all day, only rousing himself to do a little carpentry work before returning to his nap. What a dope!” August 21, 1942.

“I’m always teasing Margot about being such a paragon of virtue these days, and she hates it, maybe it’ll teach her not to be a goody-goody. High times she learned.” October 1,1942

On November 16,1942, Fritz Pfeffer, the eighth member of the Annex, joins the 4 Franks and the 3 van Pels families.

On January 30, 1943 Anne writes:

“I’m seething with rage, yet I can’t show it. I’d like to scream, stamp my foot, give mother a good shaking, cry, and I don’t know what else because of the nasty words, mocking books, and accusation that she hurls at me day after day, piercing me like arrows from a tightly strung bow, which are nearly impossible to pull my body from.”

-March 19, 1943-

“Dussel is terribly lax when it comes to obeying the rules of the house, not only does he write letters to Charlotte, he’s also carrying on a chatty correspondence with various other people.”

-October 17, 1943-

Father walks around with his lips pressed together, and when he hears his name, he looks up in alarm, as if he’s afraid he’ll be called upon to resolve another delicate problem.”

-April 15, 1944-

It is utterly impossible for me to build my life on a foundation of chaos, suffering and death. I see the world around me slowly transforming into a wilderness, I hear the approaching thunder that will one day destroy us too, and I feel the suffering of millions. And yet, when I look up at the sky, I somehow feel that one day that everything will return once more, In the meantime, I must hold on to my ideals. Perhaps the day will come when I’ll be able to realize them.”

Four Dutch Nazis, on August 4,1944, raided the Secret Annex under Karl Siberbauers rule and arrested the eight Jews hiding there. The Nazis entered the Annex ripping things apart, took a briefcase and shook out its belongings, in search of valuables. Anne’s diary fell to the ground and was latter found by Meip. At her own risk Miep tried to save the Residents, but didn’t succeed. Meip and all the other helpers survived the war.

Anne and her family and everyone else in from the Annex were taken to an Amsterdam prison, the transported to the Dutch transit camp, Werterbork. All eight residents of the Annex were taken on the last transport from Werterbork strait to Auschwitz, Poland. Two tirring days or more, Anne and her family, the van Pels, and Fritz Pfeffer were stuffed in cattle cars, going to Auschwitz on September 5 or 6,1944. In Werterbork, 1019 people were brought, and 549 were never registered. These people were selected and killed in gas chambers

When at the camps, men and women were separated from each other. The first to die was Herman van Pels. In October or November1944 he was gassed. Fritz Pfrffer died on December 20, 1944. Edith died on January 6,1945 of exhaustion and starvation at Auschwitz-Birkenau camp.

Anne and Margot, with little clothing and food during the severe winter of 1944-45, were already exposed to typhus. Margot died of exposure, and hunger, and disease in March 1945 at the age of 19. Anne, a short time latter after Margot died, with no family, Malnourished, and suffering from typhus and the cold died at Bergen-Belsen at the age of 15.

 Otto went to Amsterdam on June 3, 1945 and reunited with Miep and Jan Gies. He tried to find where Margot and Anne were.

 On October 24,1945 Otto received a letter saying Anne and Margot died at Bergen-Belsen. After that Meip gave Anne’s diary to Otto, he read it and was deeply moved. In honor of Anne and Margot, His daughters, he decided to publish Anne’s diary.

Otto Frank died on August 19,1980 at the age of 91.

Nicole Shoffner

7^th Social Studies

Rossville Jr. High

Holocaust Project

Spring 2003

Bibliography